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In the evolving landscape of educational support, Ontario's Policy/Program Memorandum 169 (PPM 169) represents a critical step toward comprehensive mental health and learning needs strategies for school districts. One solution to help bolster this transformation is the Digital Assessment Library (DAL), a powerful technological solution designed to not just meet but exceed the memorandum's rigorous requirements.

The steady integration of technology in the classroom has ushered in a proliferation of digital assessments, which offer immense promise to reduce educator workloads and give them better insight into their students’ unique learning needs. Yet for all the ease they provide, digital assessments shouldn’t be deployed as a plug-and-play solution, at least initially. Without proper preparation, you run the risk of yielding inaccurate results, technical difficulties and even testing irregularities.

As schools and districts aim to provide high-quality learning experiences for all students, digital assessments play a critical role in determining where gaps might exist. Today, traditional paper-based assessments are at times found to be inefficient and inflexible for monitoring and evaluating student learning progress. In contrast, digital assessments can improve the process, ensuring students who need additional support are identified while easing the workloads of overburdened educators in understaffed schools and districts. 

Equity in education means every student has access to high-quality learning experiences. While educators are working toward this goal, gaps persist. Here are some facts about these disparities and how digital assessments can help close the opportunity gap and drive equity in education.

In support of early identification of learning needs, the Manitoba government is investing in early years evaluations and digital assessment tools in English and French for educators and clinicians across the province.